


She Knows

by deathishauntedbyhumans



Series: Copper and Brimstone [4]
Category: Copper and Brimstone, Dungeons & Dragons (Roleplaying Game), Original Work
Genre: Aeroship, F/M, Friendship, Gen, POV First Person, Starting Over, Stream of Consciousness
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-26
Updated: 2018-02-26
Packaged: 2019-03-24 09:49:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 759
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13808688
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/deathishauntedbyhumans/pseuds/deathishauntedbyhumans
Summary: As they board the aeroship, Temerity comes across the girl from the Masquerade Ball and doesn't know what to say.





	She Knows

I don’t see her at first. 

I’m much too occupied with the layout of the room, the layers of glitz and gold stacked upon each other, flashing in gilded glory as we enter the room. There is too much to see in just one glance, so I take my time. I hardly make sense of the faces in the room; they all mesh together in a swirl of colour as I peer about the space. 

When Kava —Damila, I force myself to think instead— nudges me, I only look at her briefly before agreeing to follow. Aedriyan has no past grievance with Damila; as much as it pains me to pretend it, I have given myself no choice but to act as her apprentice and follow her lead for the moment. 

(She was the natural choice: even as Aedriyan, I could not bear the thought of allowing Juno to become my superior, and as much as I have grown close to Van… Two people who are obviously children shouldn’t bond together in a serious backstory about becoming bodyguards. That’s just obvious.) 

The two heads that turn towards us as we approach manage to surprise me, even given our fair warning from Harriet’s father during our week of preparation. 

My heart skips a beat as Idna’s eyes catch mine, and I know without a doubt that she recognises me when her eyes nearly bulge out of her skull. I swallow hard and let Kava do most of the talking. When I do manage to speak, my voice sounds strange and high-pitched, even to my own ears. 

I loathe the sound immediately, but I can’t figure out how to fix it. 

I don’t know what I wanted, I muse to myself as I cross the room with the rest of the crowd, the crisis of being recognised momentarily averted. I’ve been so excited to see Idna again that I’ve forgotten how dangerous it is for both of us if she knows who I am. 

The thought trails off and dissipates entirely as I watch the aeroship rise from the ground straight into the sky. The city stretches before us, magnificent and too-small all at the same time, and I… I cannot look away. 

It is only when there is a presence at my side that I am distracted, and we are well into the sky by then. I glance up very quickly and look away as fast as I can, because Idna is standing by my side again, and I don’t know what to say to her. 

I don’t like not knowing what to say. 

She suggests starting over. I tell her I was different, at the Masquerade. She laughs it off and compliments my accent, and I can feel myself blushing. (And I’m eternally glad my complexion hardly shows it.) 

I do not understand this girl, but… I don’t hate it. She’s too confusing, but I don’t want her to leave me alone. It’s the strangest mix of emotions, and I force myself to change the subject, because there’s too much to say that I don’t know how to say. 

After all, I can’t exactly thank her for not ratting me out when I can’t even explain what I’m thanking her for without risking going back to jail. 

Camilla Darlington introduces herself to me, and I feel like I’m going to be sick. Idna smiles politely and introduces me in my own stead, which I’m grateful for, because anything past smiling politely and taking Camilla’s offered hand feels like it’ll make me explode here and now. 

I can feel the warm metal of the sheath of the dagger at my side pressing into my skin, and I want to remove the blade more than anything I’ve ever wanted before. Unsheathe the knife, lunge at Camilla, and bury the blade in her throat. Three easy steps, and then the monster is gone. 

But I don’t do it, and she walks away towards K— towards Damila after she’s finished with us. 

I don’t know how to answer Idna’s questions. I hate Camilla Darlington. I loathe her. I want her dead, because she tried to kill me, and she deserves it. I can’t say any of those things to her. She’d think I’m insane! Or… she’d believe me. This  _ is _ Idna. But I can’t risk it. So we talk about dresses, and then Idna walks away. 

I think our secret is safe with her, at least for now. I… really hope it is. I don’t want to end up having to hurt her. 

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading this if you did lmao.   
> Temerity is my character! Idna belongs to @bagobats on tumblr, and Kava belongs to @mushygreens on tumblr. These characters are all from the Copper and Brimstone podcast.


End file.
